Bullied teen Tyrone Unsworth told friend peers wanted him dead

A friend of Tyrone Unsworth, the gay Brisbane teen who took his own life last month, says the 13-year-old revealed the extent of his emotional torment to her the day before he committed suicide.

Gypsie-Lee Edwards Kennard told the ABC's 7.30
that Tyrone believed his peers "wanted him dead", and said that her mate had had his jaw broken in a hate-motivated assault.

"He was an absolute mess, crying his eyes out and telling me everyone wants him dead and I said, 'Tyrone, what do you mean everyone wants you dead?'" Ms Edwards Kennard recalled.

"He said, 'The kids at school keep telling me to go kill myself', and I was obviously gobsmacked."

Gypsie-Lee Edwards Kennard. (Screengrab, ABC 7.30) ()

She also said that Tyrone had his jaw broken in a scuffle outside school in which he was hit with a fence post and had to be hospitalised – an incident his grandma, Twiggy Jones, says made him terrified of going back to Aspley State High.

"He was very upset and sad and he didn't want to go to school," Ms Jones told the program.

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"I said, 'you need to speak to someone' and he said, 'they don't care'…He just felt like no-one wanted him around and he didn't belong."

Tyrone and his mum, Amanda. (Via ABC) ()

But as Kidspot reported earlier this week, Tyrone's family are still being targeted by homophobes after his death, with trolls continuing to torment his mother, Amanda Unsworth, online.

"Whoever is making up social media accounts in our son Tyrone’s name and posting bulls--- I’m going to the police and I will have you charged," Ms Unsworth wrote on Facebook.

"You have no bloody right doing this our son is dead and you still want to bully him grow up you pathetic little bastards."

Tyrone's death on November 21 sparked outrage among the community, prompting rallies and vigils around the country and leading to calls for the Safe Schools program to be refunded.

"Pushed to the edge"...Tyrone was bullied about his sexuality from a young age. (Via ABC) ()

The program, which has faced stiff opposition from conservative MPs and Christian lobby groups, has had its federal funding for next year nixed, though the Victorian government has said it will support it in its schools.

Proponents of the program believe educating children from a young age could be the key to preventing deaths like Tyrone's, which his mother says came after years of relentless abuse.

"He was a really feminine male, he loved fashion, he loved make-up and the boys always picked on him, calling him gay-boy, faggot, fairy. It was a constant thing from Year 5," Ms Unsworth told The Courier Mail.

"I feel like these people who were bullying Tyrone are the cause of why he is not here anymore. They pushed him to the edge."

* For support and information about suicide prevention, call Lifeline on 13 11 14.